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We live in an age where we take a lot of things for granted. When we plug in an appliance, we know that we\u2019ll get electricity to power it up. When we climb into our cars and turn the key, we know the engine will fire. When we go to the ATM and slip our card into the slot, we know we\u2019ll be able to make a cash withdrawal \u2013 unless you\u2019re in Greece.<\/p>\n
Recent economic strains have shown us that the financial system we all depend on may not be as solid as we have always accepted. When Cyprus ran into financial trouble, bank depositors received a \u201chair cut\u201d \u2013 they woke up one day and found that their balances had been \u201ccut.\u201d The same thing could happen in Greece and other countries when they run into economic troubles.<\/p>\n
I make this point to stress how important it is to be actively involved with planning your financial future. Some of the typical investments and places where we store our money may not be as \u201cguaranteed safe\u201d as we think they are. This is why investments that are backed by tangible assets should be considered for your portfolio.<\/p>\n
At Evoque Lending, we have been working with smart investors for more than 15 years. Our investors enjoy an excellent rate of return \u2013 currently in the double digits \u2013 and their investments are backed by California real estate. We specialize in\u00a0hard money loans<\/a>\u00a0on Los Angeles real estate, Orange County real estate and real estate in the San Francisco area.<\/p>\n The government is always printing more money \u2013 and don\u2019t get me started on what the eventual impact of \u201cquantitative easing\u201d may be \u2013 but not even Washington D.C. can make more California real estate. It gives me comfort to know that real estate here will always be among the world\u2019s most prime assets and that gives me confidence in First Trust Deed investing.<\/p>\n So that\u2019s the big picture, now let me fill in some details. At Evoque Lending, we take additional measures to assure the safety of investing in California First Trust Deeds. The first of these is to be sure that borrowers have sufficient equity in the properties they are borrowing against.<\/p>\n We call this \u201cprotective equity\u201d and we make sure that there is a margin of some 40 percent protective equity in all of our First Trust Deeds. Not only does this give\u00a0investors<\/a>\u00a0a big \u201csafety cushion,\u201d it keeps borrowers motivated to make their payments because they have a lot to lose should they default on their loan.<\/p>\n Of course, no one ever wants to be forced to deal with a bad borrower, so the second way we help assure confidence in Evoque Lending First Trust Deed investments is by doing a great job vetting our borrowers. We look at their credit history and get solid proof of income so we are certain they have the ability to keep up their payments as well as have a solid personal commitment to meet their obligations.<\/p>\n Frankly, there is nothing new in this. It\u2019s a time-proven formula for making sound investments. Savvy money managers and investors have been relying on these systems for hundreds of years and they will continue to produce results. I should also mention that investing in First Trust Deeds is a great strategy for virtually any circumstance, including retirement accounts, trusts and other specialized situations.<\/p>\nProtecting your investment<\/strong><\/h2>\n